Piano Lessons in Laredo, TX

Instruments: Trumpet

What do you think is the hardest thing to master on your instrument?
On trumpet, the hardest thing to master is blowing through a phrase. What I mean by this is keeping a steady air flow and not changing your air flow up and down due to the notes you are playing in what range. Flexibility studies and Stamp as well as Hood warmups in particular help with this. The next thing that is most difficult is playing quietly with a good tone. A great way to practice for this is by playing Clarke 1,2,3,4,5 at a very low volume. Pair this with flow studies, and mastering Small and Arbans etudes will certainly help sustain a steady air flow.

Do you use specific teaching methods or books? (Ex: Alfred, Bastion, Suzuki, Hal Leonard) Why did you choose them if you did?
Of coarse! A trumpet player’s best friend are their method books. The most well-known trumpet method books include Arbans and Clarke studies. These are great for fingering exercises, etudes, and a really great way to work up towards the trumpet player you want to be. Irons is great for flexibility, Small for etudes, Caruso for kinestetics, Schlossberg for etudes which are wonderful for beginners; and you can’t go wrong with Chicowitz for long tones - which of coarse improve your tone. These books belong in every trumpet players’ collection.

What does a normal practice session look like for you?
I begin with breathing exercises and move to mouthpiece buzzing. I use the Boyd Hood mouthpiece drills corresponding on piano then with my mouthpiece; resting the same amount as playing. I move onto Chicowitz long tones and then Stamp warmups. I make sure to not overplay and rest just as much as I play. I move onto technical studies - including Irons flexibilities, Clarke technical studies and etudes, and etudes from either Schlossberg, small, or Arbans - depending on what I’m working on that week. After than I normally take about a 30 minute break then I work on my literature. Last, I warm down by playing low long tones included in the Stamp warmups.

If you have a Music Degree, what is it in (Performance, Education, Musicology, Theory, Composition, etc) and why did you choose that degree?
I have a Bacholer of Arts in Music - concentration trumpet. I chose this degree to teach private lessons as well as perform gigs and I will eventually obtain my masters degree in either Musicology, Theory, Performance, or Composition. I like to keep my options open so that is why I have chosen some wiggle room for what I’m going to graduate school for. For now in this transition between undergrad and grad school, I want to teach lessons full time and continue practicing and playing gigs. I plan on attending UNT or UTA for graduate school.

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